Batgirl changes defended by Gail Simone

For the past twenty years, Gordon has gone under the alias 'Oracle' after being paralysed from the waist down by the Joker in Alan Moore's iconic 1988 story The Killing Joke.

However, the DC Comics relaunch this September will once again star Gordon as Batgirl, giving the character her mobility back in the process.

This decision has sparked the most outcry out of all the news to emerge from the DC relaunch, and upcoming Batgirl writer Gail Simone has said that she understands the concern.

"She's been removed from the action and danger for a long time," Simone told Newsarama. "With this relaunch she is still very much Barbara but she can reclaim part of her history and legacy with modern stories - in her own book and elsewhere - drawn by some wonderful artists.

"It seems remarkable but this is the first time in DC history that Barbara Gordon has had an ongoing solo book."

Despite her enthusiasm for writing Gordon as Batgirl for the first time, Simone admitted that she was initially hesitant about the decision.

"When this idea has come up before I have fought against it," Simone explained. "But here is the key decider for me. It's the relaunch. That really moves all the goalposts.

"If nearly everyone in the DC Universe - not just Batgirl, but almost everyone - is now at a much earlier stage in their career, then my main objection no longer applies because we are seeing Barbara at an earlier stage."